Bill would legalize sex work in NY

Critics say measure would fuel human trafficking

1of3Sex workers, trafficking survivors, and advocates from Decrim NY take part in a rally with legislators to push for passage of legislation that would decriminalize prostitution in New York on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, in Albany, N.Y. (Paul Buckowski/Times Union)Paul Buckowski/Albany Times Union2of3Sex workers, trafficking survivors, and advocates from Decrim NY take part in a rally with legislators to push for passage of legislation that would decriminalize prostitution in New York on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, in Albany, N.Y. (Paul Buckowski/Times Union)Paul Buckowski/Albany Times Union3of3

Jessica Raven, a former survival sex worker and a member of Decrim NY's stering committee, addresses those gathered for a rally at the Capitol on Tuesday, May 7, 2019, in Albany, N.Y. Sex workers, trafficking survivors, and advocates from Decrim NY held a rally with legislators to push for passage of legislation that would decriminalize prostitution in New York (Paul Buckowski/Times Union)

Paul Buckowski/Albany Times Union

ALBANY — Lawmakers, transgender activists and sex workers unveiled a bill Monday decriminalizing the sex trade in New York, the first legislation of its kind to be introduced in the state.

The Stop Violence in the Sex Trade Act would remove criminal penalties for the purchase and sale of sex between consenting adults, and amends some anti-trafficking laws to prevent the arrest of younger prostitutes who choose to live and work in groups for their own safety.

Advocates contend that legalization will bring the industry out of the shadows, and enable victims of trafficking or exploitation to seek help from law enforcement or social service agencies without fear of repercussions.

Sen. Julia Salazar, D-Brooklyn, said the legislation addresses widespread discrimination against people who are drawn to the sex trade for a variety of reasons.

"The harm caused by criminalization is hard to even quantify," said Salazar, a co-sponsor of the bill. "People, because of their gender identity, because of circumstances beyond their control, have been kept from services that allow them to survive and thrive in this state."

The bill's sponsors seek to draw a distinction between voluntary sex work and exploitation.

State law has more than two dozen anti-prostitution laws, about half of which pertain to sex work between consenting adults, while the other statutes focus on trafficking, exploitation of minors and coercion in the sex trade. The bill would uphold most of the anti-trafficking statutes.

The Assembly's sponsor, Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried, said he does not foresee a reason to regulate the commercial sex industry.

"We don't have special regulations for people who want to engage in consensual sex not for money," Gottfried said.

Sen. Jessica Ramos, a Queens Democrat who chairs the Senate labor committee, said labor protections may be added and will include input from sex-trade workers.

"By giving sex workers dignity ... we are empowering them to report violence against them," Ramos said. "Sex inherently is not a bad thing. What we want to do is make sure that the people who are making the demand and producing the supply are able to do so with consent and not coercion."

The legislation has drawn objections from victims' advocates, feminist organizations and law enforcement officials, who cite research indicating that legalization in other countries has led to an increase in trafficking and exploitation of minors.

"When you have a free-market sex trade, pimps and traffickers become entrepreneurs, the market is fueled, and supply needs to be increased," the National Organization of Women's Sonia Ossorio said.

Advocates acknowledge that the measure is controversial and say they don't expect it to advance this legislative session, which is slated to end in two weeks.

There is broader support for a set of bills pending in the Legislature that would repeal the state's "loitering for purposes of prostitution" ban, which activists say results in profiling and criminalization of transgender people, and a bill that would expunge criminal records for victims of trafficking.

Since 2007, the Legislature has worked to build up a legal system that crack downs on human traffickers and the exploitation of vulnerable populations.

Experts who work with trafficking victims say that the bill would undo the state's anti-trafficking laws, which are now considered some of the strongest in the nation.

"Upend doesn't even begin to describe it. ... It would dismantle — eviscerate these laws," said Dorchen Leidholdt, director of the legal center at the New York City-based Sanctuary for Families, which assists hundreds of trafficking victims annually.

Groups including the Sanctuary for Families and NOW support decriminalizing the sale of sex, but want to keep strong laws on the books targeting the "johns" who patronize prostitutes, and the pimps who profit from it. They say diversion programs through the state's specialty human trafficking courts have been effective at helping sex workers avoid criminal charges or jail time.

Leidholdt noted that state laws cracking down on the sex tourism industry, which has lured affluent Americans to underdeveloped countries to patronize underage and economically disadvantaged prostitutes, have largely eradicated that trade in the state.

"We've seen this experiment play out in the Netherlands and New Zealand: sex trafficking increases, child sex trafficking increases, organized crime increases," she said.